Luigi Mangione case: What's behind the latest court hearing and how we got here
NEW YORK CITY (WABC) -- Luigi Mangione's prosecution in the killing of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson has moved between state and federal courts like a jurisdictional game of ping pong since his arrest in December 2024, with a new joint filing from defense attorneys and federal prosecutors raising fresh questions about the status of the federal case ahead of his upcoming state trial.
Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg announced an 11-count indictment against Mangione, then 26, in December 2024, charging him with murder and related offenses. Around the same time, the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York unsealed a four-count criminal complaint charging Mangione with interstate stalking and weapons offenses resulting in murder. Both sets of charges were filed within days of his arrest.
NEW DETAILS | Luigi Mangione admits to shooting UnitedHealthcare CEO as he pleads guilty in federal case
Mangione was extradited to New York City following a nationwide manhunt after authorities released surveillance video showing a masked and hooded individual approaching Thompson from behind outside a Midtown hotel and opening fire. In the days that followed, the NYPD recovered a discarded backpack in Central Park and released additional surveillance images as investigators traced the suspect's movements.
The case has generated repeated court appearances in both state and federal courts during the past year and a half. The prosecution unfolded as supporters of Mangione became a rallying point for some critics of the health care industry after investigators said the words "delay - deny - defend" were etched on shell casings recovered at the shooting scene.
In April 2025, former Attorney General Pam Bondi announced that the Department of Justice would seek the death penalty.
Mangione's attorneys have challenged key evidence in both courts. During a three-week evidentiary hearing in state court in December 2025, body-worn camera footage of Mangione's arrest at a McDonald's in Altoona, Pennsylvania, and the 911 calls that led to his arrest were made public for the first time.
The defense secured a partial victory in January when a federal judge dismissed two death penalty counts against Mangione. However, the federal trial date has been postponed multiple times as the Manhattan District Attorney's Office has sought to try its case first.
Hours after a final pretrial hearing Tuesday in the state case, which is scheduled to go to trial Sept. 8, Mangione's attorneys and federal prosecutors jointly requested a hearing for Friday morning in a letter filed with the court.
The unusual filing prompted speculation about why both sides came together to seek the hearing and renewed questions about the status of the federal case as the state murder trial approaches.
On Friday, Mangione pleaded guilty to federal stalking charges in the killing of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson. He admitted to following Thompson to an investor conference in 2024 and shooting him on a New York City street.
Speaking outside court later Friday afternoon, Mangione's attorney Karen Friedman Agnifilo said that her team has filed a motion to dismiss his state murder case under New York's double jeopardy law.
ALSO READ | Luigi Mangione's lawyers move to dismiss state murder case after federal guilty plea
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